NASA wants to know what the Sudbury crater has to tell scientists about life on Mars. Researchers from the U.S. space agency are probing the most inhospitable places on Earth in the hopes they will find clues about how lifeforms could survive another inhospitable place — Mars. They are studying how lifeforms adapted to survive in the Siberian permafrost, the arid valleys of Antarctica and a dormant volcano in the Chilean Andes. And they’re hoping that Canada’s ancient Sudbury crater also has some secrets to reveal.

Space officials love to talk about the new Canadarm 2 they will launch on Thursday, but they never mention the gross side of space: Canadian astronauts will soon drink purified urine — not all of it human. The new International Space Station, where Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield is headed, will soon rely on the most modern water recycling system in the world.